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<p>Telecommunications networks have historically been used exclusively for communications. As the wireless industry evolves toward 6G, traditional telecommunications networks and sensor technology like radar and LiDAR are beginning to converge in an innovative advancement called integrated sensing and communications, or ISAC.</p>
<p>ISAC refers to the use of radio signals to &ldquo;sense&rdquo; or detect and identify various objects and surfaces within a surrounding environment. The radio sensing functions would be embedded into the network base station or user device to complement the data and information received about the connected, and unconnected, objects in its environment.</p>
<p>This convergence of telecoms and sensing has the potential to turn every cell phone into a functional radar device, capable of mapping and detecting changes in the environment around it, and equipping networks with capabilities to monitor a wide range of objects and other factors in their environment. This novel integration will open up several new opportunities and use cases for network operators and users alike.</p>
<p>Today, ISAC represents one of the clearest examples of the novel differences between 5G and 6G, revealing new capabilities and use cases for mobile network operators that were not previously possible.</p>
<p><span style="color: #652e8e;"><em>To learn more about the evolution of 5G-Advanced and the expected enhancements and novel capabilities borne out of 6G, check out our paper &ldquo;<a href="https://www.interdigital.com/white_papers/driving-5g-advanced-to-6g">Driving 5G-Advanced to 6G</a>&rdquo;</em> </span></p>
<p>We are building the roadmap and pathway to 6G today, even though the first commercial 6G applications are expected around 2030. Still, research and innovation companies like InterDigital, pre-standards and standards bodies like the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and 3GPP, respectfully, and a variety of industry research consortia have begun to explore the benefits, challenges, and potential for ISAC technology.</p>
<h3><span style="color: #00aeef;"><strong><strong>BENEFITS</strong></strong></span></h3>
<p>While ISAC represents a novel technology, sensing is not new. In fact, sensing is a mature technology that can be seen throughout our modern staples like IoT sensors, LiDAR, radar, Wi-Fi sensors, and more. The sensing data collected from these devices is typically sent &ldquo;over-the-top&rdquo;, or directly to the application using it, and though sensing data can travel over any type of network, it&rsquo;s not being used by the network today. This is one of the most important network evolutions to be made possible by ISAC.</p>
<p>ISAC is expected to be a key technology building block on the pathway to 6G, to be implemented in two major phases.</p>
<p>The first phase assesses the network to determine whether the sensing data may be sent through the network instead of &ldquo;over the top&rdquo;, enabling operators to process and apply the data to optimize their network functions, operations, and services. Under ISAC, the cellular network would serve as a traffic manager, offering quality assurances and exposing or directing the right sensing data to services and network functions.</p>
<p>This exposure phase has already begun in 5G and will likely continue as network operators begin to understand the value proposition and potential application of integrating sensing data. Prior to the integration enabled by ISAC, sensing data sent over the networks was not exposed into the networks, but as network operators receive and process more data, it will likely become an operationally and financially valuable asset to them, and downstream services.</p>
<p>Phase two is much more advanced and is expected to unlock additional sensing capabilities by enabling the operator to use their own sensing signals &ndash; the radio signal, radio spectrum, and the cellular modem &ndash; to gather sensing data of its environment. At this stage, the operator can ease reliance on external sensing devices by using their own radio signal, transmitted by the base station or user equipment, to support sensing capabilities.</p>
<p>This phase would allow network operator to fuse the data from their own sensing signals with the data collected from external sensing devices to get a better, more comprehensive view of the network environment. This enables finer-tuned optimizations of the network and better and newer services offered on top.</p>
<p>ISAC offers a compelling value proposition for network operators because it offers avenues for network optimization as well as new services and opportunities that could be made available to customers and industry. The new value created suggests the potential for a ROI that could be used to cover infrastructural investments and invest in the research of even more advanced network capabilities.</p>
<p>ISAC will be most valuable to operators who can apply their sensing data to improve operational efficiency and monetize new services. Higher quality data typically leads to a higher quality service, and the telco operators best leverage their sensing data will likely realize the greatest benefits.</p>
<p>Lastly, sustainability remains a critical discussion for all new technologies. Sustainability has been identified as an essential requirement for all IMT 2030 systems and when it comes to ISAC, energy efficiency is one of the key value and performance indicators. When exploring the sustainability of ISAC, advanced researchers and industry consortiums are beginning to consider how ISAC supports mobile network operator objectives to mitigate energy consumption or improve energy efficiency, or if ISAC can support novel use cases that achieve sustainable outcomes.</p>
<h3><span style="color: #00aeef;"><strong><strong>CHALLENGES</strong></strong></span></h3>
<p>Implementing ISAC will not require a complete replacement of the network. However, in order to integrate the network&rsquo;s communications data with sensing data, the ecosystem will need to change how the network operates, and how devices are made.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, there&rsquo;s no way to snap your fingers and turn your existing modem into a radar-like device today. This requires a hardware change, both at the base station and in user equipment to equip them with sensing capabilities. Network operators will need to pay for and implement these upgrades, while equipment manufacturers will be able to sell more devices to individual users and infrastructure to the operators.</p>
<p>In addition, key design components would need to change in order to embed modems and base stations with radar-like capability, including waveforms, framing, and retransmission. For example, researchers are still exploring the degree to which we can use today&rsquo;s waveforms or whether we need new waveforms that are better suited to sensing as well as communications. There are myriad implications and design considerations when determining how to enable modems to perform the sensing task in addition to their traditional communications function.</p>
<p>On the infrastructure side, a communications base station will need to deploy radio sensing modems in addition to potentially various external sensors &mdash; such as radar and LiDAR &mdash; and integrate them into a framework that can leverage the sensing data from all sources. Standards play a critical role in this, and every, aspect of technology evolution, shaping how a technology works and fostering interoperability and trust in how devices interact, and how their data is coordinated. Standards provide the foundation that allows networks to be deployed consistently, regardless of geography, device type, or operator.</p>
<p>At InterDigital, our innovation today empowers the technologies, services, and opportunities of our future. We will continue to showcase our expertise and leadership in shaping the pathway and potential of ISAC technology, while finding innovative solutions to hurdles and challenges that will reveal significant benefit and opportunity to network operators and end users everywhere.</p>